They make you pay to play

Off the cuff, this is a bad start. If a promoter asks you to play at their gig, it should be because they want you and not your hard earned cash. What would we recommend in this situation? Moving on to the next opportunity.

They sell you the tickets first

This is taking it even further. By selling you the tickets, the promoter is putting all the pressure on you to fill out the venue, and ensuring their own money isn’t on the line. If you’ve chosen to work with a promoter, they should be the one leading the ticket sales operation.

Small percentage of ticket sales

If, after the gig, you receive only a small percentage of the total ticket sales, something’s not right. Yes, you can expect the promoter to take some of the earnings, but remember, you are the person people are coming to see. And, if you’re a small early-stage artist, this income could be key to furthering your career.

Bare minimum marketing

It’s days before the event, and you’ve still seen no marketing push from the promoter, this is also a bad sign. If they truly care about you as artist, they’ll want the event to be a success as well as a positive experience for you, the artist

They take a cut of merch sales

Merch is key for boosting an artist’s income. But, far too often, we hear of promoter’s claiming a cut of those all-important merch sales. If a promoter requests a cut, challenge them on this - particularly in the case where they don’t own the venue - those extra pennies earned from t-shirts and stickers (etc.) could pay for your next music video, future release marketing and, of course, a headline show.